Exporting goods on pallets: the sequence that avoids late surprises

Step 1 — Decide the pallet before the order is picked

Treat export pallets as a controlled item with its own stock location, not as whatever is nearest the bay. Once a load is built, changing the pallet under it costs far more than selecting correctly in the first place.

Step 2 — Confirm what the packaging is made of

GOV.UK guidance is clear that solid wood packaging material, pallets included, falls under the wood packaging material rules for movements between Great Britain and other countries, including EU member states. Processed non-solid wood such as plywood sits outside those rules. Establish which you are actually shipping on, because sites often hold both.

Step 3 — Inspect the mark, pallet by pallet

The mark on the item is what evidences compliance. Certification paperwork cannot substitute for it. If a required mark is missing or illegible, an invoice, a supplier declaration or a treatment certificate does not fix the pallet — and no one should be told that it does.

Step 4 — Remove pooled stock from the decision entirely

Pooled pallets belong to their operator and remain under the operator's control. They are not surplus stock, not export stock you can commit, and not yours to send abroad on the assumption they will come back. Segregate them and deal with the operator directly.

Step 5 — Record what you did

Photographs, counts and provenance take minutes at the point of loading and are almost impossible to reconstruct afterwards. If a consignment is later queried, the record is the difference between a short conversation and a long one.

Step 6 — Know the stopping point

If inspection leaves you unsure, stop and ask. Your freight forwarder, the relevant plant-health authority or an inspection body can answer the compliance question. We can get the stock ready either way, but that call is theirs to make.